Although the specs on the Phi 200 aren’t complete enough for me say with any certainty, I suspect there is a good chance it would avoid the issues I raised about pairing the Sigma with the Sabrina. For that matter, I can’t be sure that the issues I cited would be problems with the Sigma either, but they are certainly significant concerns IMO.
Probably the best thing to do if you want to consider the Phi 200 is to call Kevin Hayes at VAC and discuss it with him. In doing so, be sure to point him to the Stereophile measurements of the Sabrina that I linked to. The question, basically, is not whether the amp can drive the speaker, it is whether or not impedance interactions would cause the pairing to not be a good one in terms of sonics.
However another concern that just occurred to me, that is applicable to the Phi 200, the 200iq, and most or all of the other VAC power amps, is that they have particularly high gain, while the Aeris DAC has a specified maximum output level of 7 volts, which is extremely high. (It isn’t clear, though, if the 7 volts applies to the balanced output, the unbalanced output, or both).
The gains of the VAC amps are about 5 db more than the gain of the Rowland 625 S2, assuming balanced connections are used in both cases, even though the Rowland is much more powerful. (And the gains of the VAC amps from their unbalanced inputs are even higher). The combination of high amp gain, very high DAC output, and the additional gain of an active preamp (if one is used) may cause you to have to set the volume control(s) on the DAC and/or preamp to settings that are undesirably low in their ranges. Which, in addition to possibly compromising the resolution of the volume adjustment, might degrade the sonics of the DAC, especially if its volume control function is performed in the digital domain.
Although on the other hand the somewhat low sensitivity of the Sabrina will be helpful in that regard, to some extent.
Apologies for citing so many concerns and negatives in my posts, but as I see it these are things that should be considered before making such a significant investment.
Regards,
-- Al
Probably the best thing to do if you want to consider the Phi 200 is to call Kevin Hayes at VAC and discuss it with him. In doing so, be sure to point him to the Stereophile measurements of the Sabrina that I linked to. The question, basically, is not whether the amp can drive the speaker, it is whether or not impedance interactions would cause the pairing to not be a good one in terms of sonics.
However another concern that just occurred to me, that is applicable to the Phi 200, the 200iq, and most or all of the other VAC power amps, is that they have particularly high gain, while the Aeris DAC has a specified maximum output level of 7 volts, which is extremely high. (It isn’t clear, though, if the 7 volts applies to the balanced output, the unbalanced output, or both).
The gains of the VAC amps are about 5 db more than the gain of the Rowland 625 S2, assuming balanced connections are used in both cases, even though the Rowland is much more powerful. (And the gains of the VAC amps from their unbalanced inputs are even higher). The combination of high amp gain, very high DAC output, and the additional gain of an active preamp (if one is used) may cause you to have to set the volume control(s) on the DAC and/or preamp to settings that are undesirably low in their ranges. Which, in addition to possibly compromising the resolution of the volume adjustment, might degrade the sonics of the DAC, especially if its volume control function is performed in the digital domain.
Although on the other hand the somewhat low sensitivity of the Sabrina will be helpful in that regard, to some extent.
Apologies for citing so many concerns and negatives in my posts, but as I see it these are things that should be considered before making such a significant investment.
Regards,
-- Al